3800 Need help! (pics on the way)

sloogtp

Member
Oct 8, 2008
19
0
I need some input on what could be wrong with my car. I think I know what it is but I'm hoping that I'm wrong. This is what happened. I hardly ever let my car go over 3k rpms. I never get on it like flooring it or anything. I mostly baby this car. Anyways last week I was going to pass up a car and I get on it and the car stalls and I get a check engine light. I figured it could be anything. Well saturday I'm on my way to school and the car starts stalling really bad. So I call a buddy of mine and take the car to his shop. WE get the car scanned and It was misfiring pretty bad on cylinder one. I took the plug out and the pin on the plug wich is supposed to be at a .50 gap was pinned shut to the plug :eek: I was like WTF! I figured I might of dropped it when I tuned up the car. It was an NGK TR55 V power plug. So I drive from alsip to chicago with the car running fine thinking it was an easy fix. WEll later on the day I'm on my way to chicago and the same thing happens. I drive back home and open the car up and proceed to take all plugs out again. WEll this time the same thing happened to cylinder #5. The pin on this plug was pushed in so bad it actually bent the pin out to the side. Now I know I have some major problem with the car. I'm not getting it why The piston is hitting the plug??? Its been running fine for 140k and now Its taking a shit on me :angry: NOt even my older bro's SSEI is doing this with 180k.

What could be causing this? I'm thinking I could get away with shorter plugs. But what plugs would be short enough to avoid this? The car is not knocking or mixing or anything. I put the new plug and it seems to be running fine. I know that If I floor it again its going to do the same thing with probably a different cylinder.

What should I do? Any suggestions? I'm open to anything.
 

Mike K

TCG Elite Member
Apr 11, 2008
13,214
2,586
It's not even so much that you don't have the mods but that by babying the car you effectively seal it's fate next time you give it gas. Babying the car and keeping the RPMs low allows for carbon buildup in the cylinder. This carbon develops hot spots and will cause pre-detonation (knock).

I know everyone thinks they're doing their car a favor by babying it but it's typically quite the opposite so long as your car is properly setup to be flogged.
 

smknL67

Regular
Aug 7, 2007
493
0
Bensenville
DAwm it. I always thought that babying my car would ensure me to hit 200k before I would rebuild or put another motor in it. I'm gonna have to buy that scanner and now I will begin to seek what build will be best for me :( There goes my income tax check


MIke K can you explain that just a lil bit more, Just want to play it safe with my next build. You guys do have a shop right?
 

Mike K

TCG Elite Member
Apr 11, 2008
13,214
2,586
Yeah we should be in our shop in a couple weeks. We can get the piston(s) swapped out for you or a complete motor if you want.

A replacement longblock is $500.00 if necessary plus labor of course.

The problem with your setup is two-fold.

1. You don't have all the proper supporting modifications for your pulley size. Typically this isn't a problem with a 3.4 pulley but...

2. You also baby your car which causes the problem with the carbon build-up. One problem or the other is ok 9 times out of 10 but when you combine them you run into problems.

In this case I suspect the carbon was the deal closer and did the damage. Now we've also seen on very rare occasion carbon breaking off and doing this damage with no piston damage or at least I presume it's carbon. Something needs to be hammering that electrode. ;)

The fix is cheap (relatively).
 

bikrboy128

Some say.....
TCG Premium
Jul 15, 2007
12,878
11,502
Wheaton
Every car i have ever babied I always had problems with it...Now I just beat ths shit out of all of them and they run like champs. (At least untill 140k miles then you blow a head gasket lol)
[/b]

well that didnt work for me. i used to have a 95 honda civic hatchback. the car was slow as shit (although quick for 100HP) but i beat the shit out of that car everytime i drove it. WOT light to light :lolsign:
~100k miles headgasket blew and the trans needed to be rebuit (power shifting ftw)
it was funny cuz i think i messed the rev limiter up. it used to bounce at 7k rpms. but after a good 40k mile ass whoopin i bumped it to about 7800 rpms.

but with my GP i will get on it every once and awhile just to feed the need for speed and hear my supercharger whine. but i dont punish it
 
I

imported_GraFFix

Guest
Well im not saying I go WOT from every light but I do get on the car quite often...I guess to and from work i usually drive normally but every once in a while you got to hit the skip shift and pass someone to scare the hell out of them when there on the phone and driving like ass. I like the highways more though...on ramps are the best.
 

M@

Somebody buy this thing
Nov 26, 2007
2,871
2
Yeah we should be in our shop in a couple weeks. We can get the piston(s) swapped out for you or a complete motor if you want.

A replacement longblock is $500.00 if necessary plus labor of course.

The problem with your setup is two-fold.

1. You don't have all the proper supporting modifications for your pulley size. Typically this isn't a problem with a 3.4 pulley but...

2. You also baby your car which causes the problem with the carbon build-up. One problem or the other is ok 9 times out of 10 but when you combine them you run into problems.

In this case I suspect the carbon was the deal closer and did the damage. Now we've also seen on very rare occasion carbon breaking off and doing this damage with no piston damage or at least I presume it's carbon. Something needs to be hammering that electrode. ;)

The fix is cheap (relatively).
[/b]

I don't know who told you this, or why you believe it, but.....no, just plain old, no.

His car is almost stock, it was setup by GM to be reliable for the masses, 90% never even take the car WOT. Carbon deposits have nothing to do with this in the least. He's running a tiny pulley, and the only thing that kept the car alive was keeping it out of boost.

Keeping out of it will keep the vehicle running at 14.7 AFR, the absolute cleanest burning AFR, where emissions and carbon deposits will be minimized, is NOT going to lead to its demise.

Hell, I've cracked open cherry motors that were from 1 owner cars, driven by old ladies from home to church, and they've been the cleaner of the motors I've seen. I've actually witnessed more carbon buildup in my motor in 10k miles on a very high powered, hard driven setup, than that 50k grandma motor saw.

MT
 

Mike K

TCG Elite Member
Apr 11, 2008
13,214
2,586
Matt, I'm simply speaking from experience. Your's seem to differ than mine.

I've opened up motors before that smashed electrodes and didn't pop a piston.

Keep in mind I'm not insinuating that the carbon damaged the motor but that it excentuated his problem (lack of supporting mods).
 
I'm gonna need help Rob thanx. (pm me your #) I do have a lot of parts that I was intending to throw on like the ported manifolds and the 3"dp that I have sitting in the garage, lowering springs, new struts, but I never scanned. I am going to buy the scanner tomorrow from the w-body store. Sunday I will be dropping the oil pan to see if I find any piston shavings or metal shavings. The funny thing is that with the new plugs the car is running like a champ. I havent gone over 3500 rpms though I'm scared to chew another plug.

Now my LT1 Impala has been driven hard and it has yet to give me a hard time...I miss driving my V8
 
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